Catch a Falling Star
by FyredrakeMagick
Summary: As the Iron Maiden escorts Abel, Tres and Esther back to Rome after their first meeting in Istavan and subsequent travels, Esther is suffering from nightmares and takes a walk on the wild side... overboard! AbelxEsther.


**Catch a Falling Star**  
By FyredrakeMagick

As the Iron Maiden escorts Abel, Tres and Esther back to Rome after their first meeting in Istavan and subsequent travels, Esther is suffering from nightmares and takes a walk on the wild side... overboard! AbelxEsther.

**DISCLAIMER: **Trinity Blood was written by Sunao Yoshida, Character Designs by Thores Shibamoto and Manga by Kiyo Kyujo, all copyrights belong to them. Any fan-fiction/doujinshi/fan-art I make is not made for profit but made for fun and out of respect and admiration of the official versions.

**READING NOTES: **I try to produce fan works in-character and in-canon - exploring what might have happened in the gaps in between official chapters, where my stories do not adversely affect the original story. I draw more heavily from the manga and light novels than the anime. There are romantic interactions between members of the clergy, please do not read if you are offended by this.

For this story, I recommend either reading vols. 1 & 2 of the manga in particular. Alternatively, read the light novel vol.1 Reborn on Mars: The Star of Sorrow, or watch up to episode 04 of the anime.

...

...

The twin moons were crystal clear in the night sky, shining down on the imposing snowy-white airship. The Iron Maiden II, a key player in the arsenal of the Arcanum Cella Ex Dono Dei (the AX for short), hummed gently as it floated over the Adriatic Sea returning to Rome.

The holographic captain cast her ever-sleepy eyes over the main control board. Sister Kate Scott, codenamed Iron Maiden I, had been ordered to pick up her incredibly tardy colleagues, Agent Crusnik and Agent Gunslinger. With the Star of Sorrow destroyed and order restored to Istavan, her co-workers were taking their own sweet time returning to headquarters - and Cardinal Caterina Sforza did not like to be kept waiting. Accompanying the two AX agents was Esther Blanchett, a most unfortunate novice nun, cruelly dragged into the proceedings.

She was the one who had lost everything.

Stark moonlight filtered though a porthole window into a small cabin. The pale light played off lashings of red hair in disarray across a pillow. Esther was tossing and turning in her sleep, beads of sweat on her forehead.

Suddenly, she lay still, her breathing calm. Her eyes opened, but they remained unfocused. She slowly rose from her bed, as if in a trance. The sheets slid off her as she walked to the door. She let herself out.

...

...

Sometimes when the stress got to him, he couldn't help lamenting out loud. "Argh, Caterina is going to kill me!"

The gangly young-looking man raised his silvery head after having bashed it against his keyboard, then pushed his glasses further up his nose. Agent Crusnik, otherwise known as Father Abel Nightroad, squinted at the monitor and sighed.

It's not as if he didn't appreciate the luxury of being picked up by the Iron Maiden but for Caterina to send Sister Kate to pick them up must have meant she was getting impatient. She was going to be in such a bad mood. Heaven forbid, she may even deduct this as an expense from his pay!

He closed his eyes and clasped his hands together, offering a quick prayer. "Oh Lord, have mercy on me and give me the strength to type up a flawless report so as to appease her fury..."

He started browsing through the computer files, grumbling to himself as he went along. "So much bureaucracy... where's the form... Papal State Affairs Special Operations Section... Administrators... Reports... Templates... ah, got it."

His fingers flew over the keys in a well-practised blur as he started filling in the form.

So much had happened over the past couple of weeks. So much bloodshed, so many lives lost along the way. Yet their actions in destroying the Star of Sorrow had saved many more lives - he had to find some comfort in that. At least, that's what he had to keep telling himself. Even whilst journeying back to Rome, he was forced to fight. Trouble always seemed to follow him. A sad, but apt excuse he had to constantly give to Sister Esther Blanchett.

Speaking of whom, he needed to fill out a profile sheet for Miss Esther. It had been a while since the AX had taken on a new ally.

He stopped halfway through his mission report and delved back into the various administration files.

"Hehe, gotcha!" Grinning like he'd just discovered an unlocked fridge full of desserts, he retrieved the correct form and began to type.

Name: Esther Blanchett

Occupation: Novice Nun, originally of St. Mathias' Church, Istavan, Hungary. Now reassigned to Rome.

Appearance: 17yrs, 4' 10", fair skin, red hair, blue eyes, possibly Albionian?

History: Orphan raised by the late Bishop Laura Vitez of St. Mathias. Has some combat experience due to leading resistance movement against the late Gyula Kadar, Marquis of Hungary. Unsuspectingly acquainted with undercover Rosencreuz Orden member Dietrich Von Lohengrin.

He leant back in his chair and scratched the back of his silver ponytail, as he so often did when collecting his thoughts. His face darkened and he grew silent.

_Esther... that poor girl_, he wondered. _Why must swords be bestowed upon the young? She was forced to grow up so quickly, surrounded by so much death, destruction and revenge._

His shoulders shook slightly as he suppressed a bitter laugh.

_She's... a little like me, isn't she? More than I would like to admit. But I don't want her to go down the same road as me. I don't want her making the same mistakes. No one should ever repeat even a fraction of the sins I have committed. Not in the name of revenge, or righteousness or anything of the sort._

He looked towards the window of his cabin, at the two moons suspended in the night sky.

_After Dietrich forced her to shoot me, at that moment... her eyes were so dead, so bleak with despair, she couldn't even cry._

He closed his eyes, basking in the moonlight. If only this clean, clear light could wash away everything.

...

...

_"Pitiable, to the point of beauty. Those left behind are ever thus."_

_That was Gyula speaking, wasn't it? Abel squinted, his vision still blurry from the pain of his multiple gunshot wounds. Then - brave, compassionate and noble child that she was, Esther replied._

_"...Yes. Just like you."_

_Abel's heart ached at her words. He raised his head, now able to make out the figures in front of him. He watched as Esther was tilted back, unresisting and broken, by the Marquis._

_"That's correct," Gyula said, baring his fangs. "I have nothing."_

_Abel gritted his teeth. He didn't know what was more agonising - seeing Esther in such danger, or seeing her so resigned to her fate. He willed her not to give up hope._

_I am on your side! Hang in there, Esther, don't give up!_

_Shakily, he pulled out his percussion revolver and took aim at the Marquis._

_Then he saw it._

_Her face lit up, tears welled in her eyes. "Fa..." she started to say._

_His eyes widened._

_Father._

_Yes, I'm here, Esther. I will save you. Always._

_He fired, blowing Gyula several feet away from her. "Father!" she cried._

_"A damsel in distress... rescued!" he announced, forcing a grin._

_The resulting series of expressions from Esther was wondrous and changeable; shock, relief, gratitude, pain, happiness and sadness, all rolled into one..._

...

...

The airship floated into a bank of clouds, obscuring the moonlight and plunging the cabin into darkness. He sensed the shift in lighting and opened his eyes.

What was it about her that affected him so deeply? From the moment they fell over each other at the railway station, he felt an uncontrollable, undeniable and inexplicable urge to protect her. It's not as if he hadn't put himself in the firing line for others before, but when it came to her... nothing else mattered, certainly not his pathetic, detestable self.

His only concern was to avoid revealing his other form - his nanomachine-enhanced vampiric Crusnik alter-ego. A monstrous being with fangs, claws and wings, capable of nothing but death and destruction. The total embodiment of his bloody past, his genocidal crusade. He couldn't bear the thought of her seeing him like that. Not when he felt the slight stirrings of friendship, maybe even - dare he even dream of it - affection, from her.

Even so, it's not like he deserved any form of affection from anyone. No, he will pay for his sins forever. He will protect humans and Methuselah. He will try to be good. He didn't need anything in return. He wasn't worth anything else.

_Father_, her voice echoed. _I'm sorry! After this... I won't cry anymore._

He closed his eyes again. Strands of red hair played along the edges of his mind. The strands led back to Esther's face, smiling and sweet, but determined and headstrong. She seemed so tiny and fragile. Yet she shone with such inner conviction, such fire. Remarkable. He wanted to support her, to be near her, to make the sapphire orbs of her eyes sparkle with laughter.

Then more strands of red hair, much longer, floated in front of her. They led back to another person. A tall, slender figure. He saw her exotically long fingernail touch her gently smiling lips, a dark cupid's bow on warm, caramel skin. He wanted to cry. He wanted to crumple into a heap, racked with sobs of grief. Because he grieved. He grieved several lifetimes for this person.

_Shh_, this motherly voice said. _I know your soul, Abel. You love this world. And you love its people. They need you._

The cupid's bow lips stopped smiling. Her finger left those lips, reaching out for him... no, pointing out beyond him, exposing a black butterfly tattoo on the palm of her hand.

_She needs you now._

His eyes flew open.

_What was that? _His mind screamed. _That felt so real, but I don't ever remember her saying that..._

His train of thought was interrupted as he heard the buzz of static behind him. He turned around in time to see the soft glow of Sister Kate materialising in his cabin.

"Father Abel! EMERGENCY! S-sister Esther appears to be sleepwalking, Father Tres is no help at all, h-he can't read a situation like this, he's making things worse!"

"What?"

Before he realised it, Abel was up from his chair and running through the airship corridors with a flustered Kate floating along after him.

"Where is she?" Abel barked.

Kate whimpered. "She's out on the starboard landing platform! She forced one of my doors open!"

"WHAT? Now you tell me - it's cold out there, I should have grabbed my cape..."

"EEEEEK!"

"What now...T-TRES?"

The pair were met with an astonishing sight. Framed by the doorway she forced open, Esther was standing outside on the retractable landing platform, her back to all the commotion she caused. She was deathly pale and still, her thin nightgown emphasising this fact even more so as it was buffeted about in the wind against her rigid body.

Tres Iqus was definitely not the best choice of negotiator.

The diminutive stature of the copper-haired android priest belied his trigger-happy nature. His codename, "Gunslinger", was demonstrated clearly here. He was aiming a tranquiliser dart gun at Esther, his face completely expressionless but his eyes dead-on-target.

"Sister Esther Blanchett," his deadpan voice warned. "Please step away from the exit and return to the interior of the craft."

Abel's jaw dropped in an expression halfway between incredulity and disgust. He rushed into the line of fire, arms flailing in panic.

"W-wait, STOP! She's not fully aware of her surroundings, so there's no need to be so blunt!" He pleaded. "Tres, don't you know anything about sleepwalkers? If woken up during an episode, they can suffer severe shock! We need to get her back to bed without waking her up!"

Tres remained impassive, holding his aim steady. "Negative, Father Nightroad. Should circumstances warrant it, further action will be required to prevent Sister Esther Blanchett from harming herself."

Abel had already grabbed hold of the dart gun, but was unable to wrest it away from Tres, only succeeding in working up a sweat whilst climbing all over him searching for leverage. To be fair, he was 200kg of bionic muscle. He sighed in resignation and hoped he could convince Tres with words. His programming wasn't completely illogical, was it?

"Look you... darting her would surely be too risky, she may react badly and fall in an unexpected direction before one of us could catch her. Now that I am here, I have a much better chance of getting through to her by talking... as opposed to you - because you, by your own admission, insist you are not a human, but a machine. So please... just stay back and let me handle this!"

Tres fixed his mechanical gaze on Abel's determined face. Abel could almost hear the cogs whirring as Tres digested his line of reasoning. Tres lowered his gun.

"Positive."

Abel let out a very audible sigh of relief, deflating slightly. He walked slowly towards Esther, as if approaching a timid deer.

"Miss Esther? Can you hear me? It's Father Nightroad..."

He stepped out through the doorway and the wind slammed into him. He squinted as the cold air clawed at his eyes, his robes and hair whipped around his body. Gingerly, he stepped closer, raising his voice above the wind.

"Miss Esther! It's dangerous out here! Please come over to me, I need to get you back inside!"

Esther turned around slowly, then stood eerily still. Her eyes were dark and empty. She started mouthing words, at first too soft to hear, then...

"...No, no, it's on fire... I need to save everyone... Father, I have to go and save everyone..."

Abel sucked in a sharp breath. She was dreaming - no, she was having a nightmare about St. Mathias' church. When Colonel Radcon razed it to the ground with flames. And with what happened to Bishop Laura Vitez, whom Esther loved as a mother...

"Miss Esther..." he began, then bit his lip. This was going to be painful.

He continued. "St Mathias' church is already gone. We can't do anything about that now. Please... just come with me, I need to get you to safety."

Esther stopped mumbling. Her eyes were still dark, but she spoke clearly now. "I... can't do anything...?"

She was no longer blank and expressionless - her lower lip began to tremble, her face started to screw up in anguish. With shaking hands, she wrenched at her hair.

"I've never been able to do anything..." she muttered, feverishly. "I couldn't save the Bishop... I couldn't save those people... I couldn't even save myself..."

Abel's heart sank. This was tearing him up from the inside. "No, don't say that, Miss Esther, please..." he insisted, trying to cut through her wall of self-loathing, but to no avail.

She released her hair, now scrutinising her fists as they clenched and unclenched. "All that blood on my hands... yet... I'm helpless. You said that, didn't you, Dietrich? My... my friend? But you weren't my friend at all, were you?"

She paused, now silent, her face resigned to sad acceptance. Her hands dropped to her sides as she took a step backwards, closer to the edge of the platform.

Abel's eyes widened and he reached out for her, running for her, desperately trying to close the gap between them. "Miss Esther! Don't move!"

She raised her head, stared straight into his panicked eyes and whispered.

"I'm... all alone again."

Time seemed to stand still as she closed her eyes and leant back.

Abel's fingers grazed the red wisps of her hair as they fluttered from his grasp.

He missed.

"ESTHER! NO!"

"0.58 seconds late."

An unceremoniously hard kick landed in Abel's back, propelling him off the edge.

"Wha-? AAAAAAAAARGH!"

Tres Iqus strode to the edge of the platform and looked down at the rapidly disappearing priest. Kate's jaw had dropped. She glided over to Tres and fumed.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to kill them both!"

"Negative. I have calculated that Father Nightroad is best qualified to retrieve Sister Esther Blanchett. Sister Kate, please prepare a suitably sized landing area for Crusnik upon his return."

...

...

Esther hurtled through the sky, limp and unconscious, only just within sight of Abel. After getting over his initial shock at being kicked overboard, Abel concentrated on the task at hand. He needed to catch up to Esther, fast.

_**Nanomachine... **_he began, then hesitated.

_I don't want her to see me like that, but... she should still be asleep. I... I guess it'll be fine_.

He continued.

_**Nanomachine Crusnik 02 loading. Limitation at 40 percent. Acknowledged.**_

His eyes flashed, flickering from his usual icy blue to a glowing crimson. He clenched his teeth, now with protruding canines. Static filled the air around him as his hair wrested free from his ribbon tie. Metallic wings burst forth from his back, feathers ringing as they brushed against each other. Impossibly black yet rippling with an inner blue light, they flapped once whilst fully stretched out at their massive wingspan, then closed tightly as he launched himself into a swift dive. Like a stooping falcon, he knifed through the air, rapidly closing the distance between them.

As he drew level with Esther, he relaxed his wings enough to slow his descent, trying to match his speed to hers. He held his arms out underneath her and slowly, very slowly, began to take some of her weight - he didn't want to wake her with sudden movements. Once she was fully supported in his arms, he spread his wings and gracefully took their fall into a glide. He slowly began to beat his wings, gradually gaining altitude.

His heart finally stopped pounding so hard in his chest as he settled into his flight path back towards the airship. Esther was safe now, safe in his arms and peaceful. He gazed down at his precious cargo. He was yet again reminded of her fragility, cradling her light frame with ease, like a little bird in hand.

"There, there, Miss Esther," he found himself whispering before he realised it. "You're safe now."

He took his eyes off her for a moment and looked up towards the Iron Maiden II. Not too far to go.

"Fa... father..."

_Oh no!_

Abel panicked for a moment, thinking she had woken up. He glanced at her face, noticing her eyes were still half-closed and unfocused.

_Well, it seems she's still sleeping or sleepy at least... if I keep talking to her like I've done up until now, she may still think it's all part of her dream... Lord, help me stay convincing!_

"Yes, Miss Esther, I'm here." He tried his best to keep his voice soft; it wasn't easy with the nanomachines working. "Everything is going to be okay, you were just having a nightmare. You'll wake up soon."

She smiled weakly. "You're always saving me, even in my dreams... my knight in shining armour, heh..."

It was rather strange for a Crusnik to blush, but Abel did at that remark.

"Father..." she continued. "I'm... just in the way..."

"No," he reassured her. "Remember what I told you in the forest? You're one of us now. That's why we're all heading back to Rome, together."

Esther shook her head. "It's more than that to me."

Abel looked puzzled.

"You won't let me in... you won't let me help. I want to stay with you."

He opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything. Why would anyone-

"You're hurting inside, aren't you?"

He closed his mouth and looked away. _Damn it all_, he thought. _I don't want to inflict my past on anyone, I wasn't careful enough with hiding it..._

"You've seen things. You know what it's like to have nothing. To lose someone you love. To live only for revenge and hatred. Then to discover how empty it makes you."

Abel stared at her sleepy face, absolutely flabbergasted. He licked his lips, his mouth suddenly dry.

"What makes you say that?" he asked her hoarsely.

"Your eyes... you put on a brave face, but your smile doesn't reach your eyes. You're haunted by something, someone. The things you know, the things you do... you know more about everything than you admit."

How.

How on earth did she manage to do that? This slip of a girl, whom he barely knew, whose lifespan was but a blink of an eye to him, had him completely sussed out.

He smiled wryly. "Perhaps. Or perhaps not."

"You're doing it again."

Abel clenched his jaw and gazed ahead at the airship.

"I wish you could trust me."

Abel's expression grew apologetic. _Oh, Esther... I wish I could. Believe me. I'm too selfish. I'm too afraid._

"Esther..." he began to say to her, when he noticed her eyes were closed. He smiled haplessly. Seems all the activity finally got to her.

They arrived at the Iron Maiden II. Two figures were standing on the main boarding deck: Kate waving her arms frantically, Tres impassive as ever. Abel flew to them, hovered briefly, then landed as gently as he could.

"Damage report, Father Nightroad." Tres enquired.

"Thank the Lord!" Kate exclaimed. "Father Tres was right in kicking you off my ship! Why, I was going to-"

"SHH!" interrupted Abel. Kate's hands flew to her mouth, cutting herself off as she realised her rashness. Tres cocked his head to one side.

Abel closed his crimson eyes and concentrated for a moment. His wings began to dissolve like ash as he internally dismissed the Crusnik nanomachines. The tingle of static in the air discharged, making his silvery halo of hair slowly float down and fall over his back and shoulders. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes, fixing his now clear wintry blue gaze on Esther.

"She's calmed down now," he said softly. "Things have been tougher on her than we thought. I'll take her back to her room."

The tender way in which Abel regarded Esther spoke volumes. Of this, Kate could tell. It was quite beautiful to look at, actually. She shook her head, getting back to business.

"Hm! Well, yes, that's fine," Kate declared, smoothing her skirts. "I trust you'll see her well. Good night, Father Abel."

Kate folded her arms and floated back towards the bridge. Tres merely nodded, then whirled around, striding away efficiently.

Abel carried Esther through the corridors in silence, contemplating over the things she said. _It's not that I don't trust you_, he thought. _I don't want to lose you. I don't want you to turn away from me._

He found himself in front of her cabin, the door still left open. He walked in and gently laid her on her bunk bed. He picked the sheets off the floor, dusted them off and laid them over her. He missed her warmth in his arms already.

He knelt there for a few seconds, gazing at her, drinking her in. Her brilliant red hair was tinted purple in the blue moonlight. The fine, delicate features of her face had a pearlescent quality. She looked like a sleeping beauty in an oil-painted masterpiece. He could stare at her for ages. He only wished he could see those enormous blue eyes underneath those long eyelashes.

He was stroking her hair before he knew it. As he felt the silken strands between his fingers, he remembered his strange vision earlier.

Long red hair over caramel skin. The gently curved lips. The motherly voice. _She needs you_.

He let Esther's hair fall through his fingers. _Yes, she needed me. How did you know? _He smiled sadly, wistfully. _But she doesn't need me now._

He closed his eyes, mentally dragging himself away.

He turned but felt a tug at the back of his head as he tried to get up. He looked back at Esther - she had pulled at his hair.

"Father... I... don't want to be alone."

He caught his breath. Oh, he could see those enormous blue eyes now. They were hazy, unfocused - was she still sleeping?

"Miss Esther..."

"I'm always alone. Everyone I ever cared for, everyone who ever cared for me... they are all gone. Why should I go on?"

Abel felt as if his heart would burst. Poor soul! She had no idea, none at all about her own worth, how much she meant to everyone.

How much she meant to him.

His restraint melted away that instant as he took her hand fiercely, outraged that she could even entertain such thoughts.

"Live, Esther! Live for me. Because... because **I **care for you."

He looked away, bashful as he came to terms with his own admission.

_I... I really do, don't I? That's why I'm so scared of getting too close... I'm scared for her._

Esther stared at him for a few seconds. He felt her pull her hand away from his.

His heart stopped. He shut his eyes, filled with disappointment.

_Silly of me, to think she would want-_

Then he felt both her hands on his face, cupping his cheeks. He opened his eyes to see her looking into his, her solemn face close enough for him to get lost in the sapphire galaxies of her irises.

_Dear Lord, she's beautiful_.

"I care for you too."

His eyes widened as her words resonated through him. But it was nothing like the shock to his system he was about to get.

She leant forward and kissed him.

Her lips were soft, warm and yielding. Though her touch was light, it was earth-moving - he felt shivers run down his spine, run races around his insides and settle, trembling, over his heart. Oh, the sharpness and the sweetness of it!

She pulled back and their lips parted. "I've always wanted to do that..." she murmured happily as her eyelids grew heavy and she turned away, snuggling into her bed.

Abel knelt there, utterly dumbstruck. He still couldn't quite believe it. But for the first time in nine hundred years - he felt something. Something very different. Something very good.

He smiled.

"Esther... thank you."

...

...

The airship was beginning its approach into Rome's airspace as the AX members gathered on bridge. Sister Kate was already halfway through her anecdote of how she discovered Esther stumbling out of the ship. Abel was trying his best not to look sheepish whilst Tres seemed to have perfected his expression of looking respectful yet completely bored.

"... and I haven't heard or seen a wink of her since you put her to bed. Thank the Lord! Now what are we going to tell her?" Kate finished.

Abel mentally dismissed the urge to raise his hand like answering a school teacher, tentatively offering, "U-um... sleepwalkers often divulge information that they would otherwise keep secret, so... so I think it's best not to tell her anything! I mean, we wouldn't want to embarrass her, would we? Ahaha..."

_Or me, _he thought to himself.

A warning tone sounded causing Kate to turn her attention to the dashboard. Her eyes glazed over for a few seconds as she processed air traffic control communications internally. Then she looked back at the priests.

"Gentlemen-," she began.

She paused as she noticed a diminutive red-headed figure in navy blue approaching. She smiled and started again. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be arriving shortly."

Kate and Tres moved away to begin landing preparations as Abel turned to face Esther and gave her a friendly nod. "You must be exhausted, Miss Esther."

Esther tried to stifle a yawn, unsuccessfully. "... Yes, I guess I am. Funny, considering I've been asleep for the whole night!"

_Uh oh_, Abel thought. He cleared his throat, trying not to look too nervous. "Ahem! Um... were the beds not comfortable? I'd better let Sister Kate know-"

"Oh no, no!" interrupted Esther. "It's just... I-I think I had too many dreams, or... or something..."

Esther closed her eyes, trying to remember. She saw the silhouette of an angel descending to rescue her. She felt long strands of hair tickling her face whilst engulfed in the warmth of someone's arms. Then... she saw his beautiful face, so close to hers. Winter blue eyes craving affection, desperate for acceptance. A kiss.

She gasped in disbelief, opening her eyes only to be confronted with the same beautiful face and those wintry eyes staring at her intently through gold-rimmed glasses. She tried her best to keep her expression level, but she couldn't hide her embarrassment. She blushed furiously and focused her gaze firmly on her shoes. _Stupid Esther! _she scolded herself. _Having wild dreams and fantasies like that! I'd better head to confession..._

Abel, seeing her cheeks go red, looked away trying to hide the fact that he was blushing too. _She is so cute when she's embarrassed_, he thought. Affecting a nonchalant tone, he airily said, "Well, once we land in Rome, things will calm down a bit. Take things steady and look after yourself."

Having composed himself, he turned to face her with a dashing smile. "I am on your side, after all."

Esther stopped finding her shoes so interesting and stared at him for a few seconds. Then she smiled back. The first genuine smile she had made for days. "Of course you are. Thank you, Father."

Oh, that smile was incredibly disarming. Abel lost his composure again. He hurriedly spun around, scratching his ponytail.

"R-right! Now to get my paperwork together... Oh no! I forgot to finish typing up my report! Caterina's gonna sell my organs on the black market for sure! Please excuse me, Miss Esther!"

He ran off in a fluster. Esther giggled, running her fingers through the back of her hair.

"Huh?" she exclaimed, as her fingers caught on something.

She looked at her find; in her palm was a black feather. She glanced up at Abel's departing figure with her wide sapphire eyes, watching his silver ponytail fluttering behind him.

_On the day I met the Father... I saw a black angel. Was it all a dream?_

She clutched the feather in her hand and smiled.

_I hope not._


End file.
